


Withheld words

by JumpingSeaPickle



Category: Phineas and Ferb
Genre: Angst, Gen, Not A Happy Ending, emotional breakdowns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-20
Updated: 2020-01-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:48:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22328122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JumpingSeaPickle/pseuds/JumpingSeaPickle
Summary: Perry needs to tell his nemesis something important but it might just break him to have to admit it(THIS IS NOT ROMANCE!!)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 34





	Withheld words

Perry’s hands shook as he reached up to knock on the door. He had already foiled Doof’s plan that day so he was off the clock. His hat was tucked into his belt, just in case Hienz didn’t recognise him without it. A few inches from the door Perry’s hand slowed to a stop, it was as if he physically couldn’t move it. This was ridiculous, he had been at Doof’s after hours plenty of times, it shouldn’t be so  _ hard _ . Perry thought about just turning back and telling him tomorrow. Maybe he would never tell him. He shook his head to clear those thoughts. No, Hienz would need to know.

Quick enough that he couldn’t stop himself he knocked on the door. Immediately his heart pounded out of his chest and he thought about just running down the stairs and out of the building but Hienz’s voice carried through the door and seemed to root Perry to the spot. “Just a minute! I’m super busy at the moment so this better be-” He threw open the door. For a second he stared at Perry, clearly struggling to recognise him. Perry let out a huff and put his hat on. “Perry the Platypus! What are you doing here, you already foiled my plan today and I’m not done with the inator for tomorrow. Did Monobrow make you come back?” Perry shook his head. Heinz frowned but opened the door wide enough to let Perry in. “Well I’m working on tomorrow’s inator like I said. I got the idea when you blew me up again.” Perry noticed how the white lab coat his nemesis was wearing still had scorch marks on it. Of course he hadn’t changed. The sight made Perry’s heart twist in a funny way.

“I think I need to go out and get some more parts later but right now I was working on the wiring. I might put a shield on this inator to make it harder to destroy.” Heinz walked over to his work station and started messing with the tangle of wires and metal pieces strewn across it. Perry churred, trying to get his attention. His nerve was quickly dwindling. “Oh I know, but it might take too long to build it so it’s not the most likely thing to happen. You know, I might actually have an old one that I never finished. I would probably do something like that, leave a half finished project behind because it would take too long. Of course me and Norm did some cleaning a few days ago and didn’t find something like a shield generator.” Normally Heinz’s rambling wouldn’t have been so grating but when he got talking about projects Perry knew he didn’t stop. He was starting to think coming here while Heinz was working was a big mistake. Maybe telling him would be a huge mistake. 

Perry pushed his face into his palms. Talking to Heinz was always easy before when it was something trivial. Oh how Perry wished it was something trivial this time. He breathed in deeply and clapped to get Heinz’s attention. He didn’t react, still rambling about his project. Perry tried again to the same effect. He steeled his nerves and grabbed Heinz by the shoulders to twist him around. “Perry the Platypus I’m trying to work! I know we usually do our nemesis routine but now is not the-” Perry pushed his hand onto the rambling man’s mouth, effectively silencing him. When he pulled away Heinz stayed quiet.

_ I need to talk with you.  _ Perry signed slowly so Heinz would be able to understand. His hands were shaking again.  _ I can’t be your nemesis anymore. I retire next week.  _ Heinz spluttered. “But, you’ve always been my nemesis! Is it something I did, because I can ramp up the evil if I need to. I know my last few schemes have been a little sub-par but-” Perry held up his hand to quiet him again. His breath had caught when he heard Heinz blaming himself. He silently cursed himself for phrasing it that way.  _ It’s not you, it’s me.  _ “Do you not like fighting me anymore?” Perry pushed his face into his hands again. Of course he would need to outright say it. This wasn’t something that he could just dance around, it wasn’t something that could be ignored anymore.

_ I’m dying Heinz. I’ve been sick for a while but I was still able to fight until a month ago. Even walking hurts too much now. I want to fight, I want to keep being your nemesis but I can’t.  _ For the first time since Perry knew him Heinz was pushed to speechlessness. Perry tried to keep the emotion off his face. He couldn’t break down, not in front of Heinz, he couldn’t do that to him. Even though his legs were shaking, even though he could feel the tears building in his eyes, even though Heinz was gaping at him like a codfish. His family knew, of course he had told them, but Perry had carefully kept himself together then, he had to. Why was it so hard now? The ground was swooping up towards him; no, he was falling. Tears blurred his vision. Heinz was the last person Perry had needed to tell, the last shred of hope that he might make it.

Everything set in for the first time since the doctor had told him. He had been hoping to never say that to his nemesis. Perry had planned on never telling him unless it was too late and of course at the doctors that morning he had been told that it finally was. Heaving in oxygen, Perry let himself drop the mask of calm he had been holding onto for so long. Heinz kneeled on the floor in front of him. He pulled Perry into his lap and hugged him tightly. Perry buried his face in Heinz’s chest, letting out all of the pain he felt with thick sobs, not caring if anyone from the agency might be watching.

Less than a month later sobs racked the bodies of his family instead as they stood in front of a freshly filled grave. A family now torn apart again. In another part of the city, another group of people saluted mournfully at a framed picture of Perry surrounded with candles and flowers. Among them was Heinz, who had traded out his lab coat for a black suit. Vanessa stood at his side. Tears fell down both of their cheeks. The sunshine contrasted horribly with the sullen mood that fell over the people who sat in mourning. And if that was the last day Heinz ever did something evil, if the grave mysteriously had a bouquet of dark red roses laid on it every week the Flynn-Fletchers decided to visit, if the sight of platypi at the zoo ripped away the happy mood of a healing family, who could blame the way the world changed when the teal haired man no longer walked among those who loved him more than words could say?

**Author's Note:**

> Dark red roses symbolize love of someone lost, that's why I specified color!


End file.
